Washington, D.C. - The government will accept 2 million acres into
the Conservation Reserve, which pays farmers to idle fragile land to
prevent erosion, protect water purity and improve wildlife habitat,
Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said this week.

The land was selected from offers submitted by farmers during a
sign-up period that ended in mid-June and will expand the size of the
reserve.

Contracts on 1.59 million acres expire this fall.

Another sign-up will be offered in early 2004, Veneman said during a
telephone news conference.

Nearly 34 million acres on roughly 364,000 farms were part of the
reserve, the largest U.S. land-idling program.